Beyond social influence: Examining the efficacy of non-social recommendations
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In: European Economic Review, Vol. 168, 104801, 09.2024.
Research output: Journal contributions › Journal articles › Research › peer-review
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TY - JOUR
T1 - Beyond social influence
T2 - Examining the efficacy of non-social recommendations
AU - Arroyos-Calvera, Danae
AU - Lohse, Johannes
AU - McDonald, Rebecca
N1 - Publisher Copyright: © 2024 The Author(s)
PY - 2024/9
Y1 - 2024/9
N2 - Do recommendations need to contain social information to change behaviour in allocation and risk tasks? We conducted two online experiments involving 1280 participants to compare the behavioural influence of recommendations based on normatively relevant information with that of recommendations that were transparently random. Although social recommendations generally shifted choices towards the recommended option, consistent with previous studies on norm compliance, their effects were statistically indistinguishable from those of random recommendations. This finding challenges the notion that norm compliance is the sole mechanism through which social recommendations exert their influence. In a follow-up study with 481 participants, we investigated four additional channels. Our results suggest that recommendations do not act as reminders of existing normative knowledge, but we find evidence partially consistent with recommendation following in order to deflect responsibility, because of an anchoring effect, and because of a social norm to follow recommendations.
AB - Do recommendations need to contain social information to change behaviour in allocation and risk tasks? We conducted two online experiments involving 1280 participants to compare the behavioural influence of recommendations based on normatively relevant information with that of recommendations that were transparently random. Although social recommendations generally shifted choices towards the recommended option, consistent with previous studies on norm compliance, their effects were statistically indistinguishable from those of random recommendations. This finding challenges the notion that norm compliance is the sole mechanism through which social recommendations exert their influence. In a follow-up study with 481 participants, we investigated four additional channels. Our results suggest that recommendations do not act as reminders of existing normative knowledge, but we find evidence partially consistent with recommendation following in order to deflect responsibility, because of an anchoring effect, and because of a social norm to follow recommendations.
KW - Economics
KW - Anchoring
KW - Behaviour change
KW - Licence
KW - Recommendations
KW - Social norms
KW - Business psychology
UR - http://www.scopus.com/inward/record.url?scp=85198275904&partnerID=8YFLogxK
UR - https://www.mendeley.com/catalogue/0618b0c7-525f-374b-8561-41a46d7b9241/
U2 - 10.1016/j.euroecorev.2024.104801
DO - 10.1016/j.euroecorev.2024.104801
M3 - Journal articles
VL - 168
JO - European Economic Review
JF - European Economic Review
SN - 0014-2921
M1 - 104801
ER -